blog

Running your own events business – my story

I’ve known lots of you in my network for some time so you may have been part of my journey as our paths have crossed running my own business for over 20 years. I wanted to share the background to setting up my own events business and the rollercoaster of excitement it can be.

I first started my own events business back in 2005 with my business partner Paul. Fast forward nearly 20 years and we still have the same passion for it now as we did then. What we deliver and how we deliver it has changed, but our ‘zest’ for events is still as fresh as it was on day one.

Back at the start of my career, I trained as a nursery nurse and fell into events after a spell as a recruiter. I had a brief job with an events agency in Birmingham and loved it. I was captivated by the variety of work, the pace and the creative aspects. Not long after, an opportunity came along at the right time to start my own business and that was that.

A few of my favourite things about running Lemon Zest Events:

• It is extremely challenging managing all aspects of the business, but the challenge gets me out of bed every day to make Lemon Zest the very best it can be.

• I love the customers we work with and get to deliver event production and media projects for. We have met some incredible people and built lasting relationships.

• Each event we treat as a fresh event and every one we deliver is different. I still learn every day too, and that's important. 
  

• Seeing a plan on paper come to life and seeing the satisfaction a customer gets is one of the best feelings. Testimonials and feedback we receive still make me beam with pride.

At times it's been a struggle as I am sure any business owner can relate to. As a business owner, you shoulder a great deal of responsibility, however, that aside it is exciting and thrilling and no two days are ever the same.

As I mentioned, how events are delivered has changed considerably. We now have access to so much more tech that adds impact and creativity to our business. We are delivering online and hybrid events and have our own studio to host this. We have built a dedicated media department producing media and content such as film to fully embed the messaging throughout an event across multiple channels. When I look back and reflect on how we have adapted our business to evolve and deliver what our customers want, it genuinely makes me very proud.

I am always positive about the events sector and those who start their own business and are still doing it 5, 10, or 15 years later. It is hard work but when you do what you love it puts fire in your belly and I can't speak highly enough of it.

As a thought to finish on, you may have been to an event and had a wonderful experience and been wowed by your time there. As the team delivering it behind the scenes, it is not always as glamorous but we do get stuck in we give it our all – and my gosh it's worth it.

If you are thinking about starting a career in events, looking for any event work experience, or generally have any event based questions, I will gladly take the time to speak.

Take a look at the elements of the Lemon Zest business and you’ll get a flavour of how diverse the events world is.

Louise Connor
Commercial Director.